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5 votes
Shelby is collecting 15 1⁄2 pounds of pebbles for a geology experiment. If she collects the pebbles in buckets that can hold 3 5⁄8 pounds of weight, how many buckets will she need?

User Naveen DA
by
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1 Answer

6 votes
First change each value into improper fractions, which is 31/2 and 29/8. To divide fractions, keep the first one the same, change to multiplication, and flip the 29/8. So, the equation is now 31/2 * 8/29. Cross cancel the 2 & 8, making the equation 31/1 * 4/29. Multiply 31 by 4 to get the numerator, 124. Then divide 124 by 29 to get the final answer, ~4.27... So, she will need 5 buckets.
User Asad Manzoor
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6.6k points
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